Man to serve at least 18 years for killing man over license plate

A Franklin County jury deliberated for just one hour today before rejecting a self-defense claim by a 23-year-old man who killed an acquaintance during an argument about license plates.

John Futty, The Columbus Dispatch

A Franklin County jury deliberated for just one hour today before rejecting a self-defense claim by a 23-year-old man who killed an acquaintance during an argument about license plates.

Brandon L. Hobbs of Elmreed Drive on the Northeast Side was convicted of murder with a gun specification, carrying a concealed weapon and illegally possessing a firearm.

His sentence will be life in prison with no chance of parole for at least 18 years. Common Pleas Judge Charles Schneider is to sentence him on Feb. 26.

Hobbs admitted that he shot 26-year-old Jaron L. Kirkling in the driveway of a friend’s house at 1799 Huy Rd. in Clinton Township on Nov. 11, 2012, but he testified that he was trying to protect himself and his girlfriend.

He said he pulled his gun and fired six rounds into Kirkling after Kirkling pulled a gun on him during the argument.

“I was scared,” Hobbs said. “I thought I was going to be shot.” His girlfriend, Shelby Abrams, also testified that Kirkling pulled a gun.

But two people who lived at the Huy Road house — Brandon Mackey and Melody Gaston — testified that Kirkling didn’t have a gun. Kirkling was Mackey’s cousin. Mackey and Gaston were Hobbs and Abrams’ friends.

Hobbs said he took Kirkling’s gun with him when he fled. He eventually gave Columbus police his handgun — a Glock — and a Smith & Wesson that he said Kirkling pulled on him. An expert hired by the defense testified that Kirkling’s DNA was on the barrel of the Smith & Wesson.

In what appeared to be pivotal testimony, Hobbs said under cross-examination by Assistant Prosecutor Doug Stead that Kirkling held the gun in his right hand. Both sides later stipulated that Kirkling was left-handed.

The fatal dispute began when Hobbs sold a Chevrolet Suburban to Kirkling, who didn’t change the license plates. Hobbs testified that his frustration grew after he got a speeding citation in October 2012 because Kirkling was caught by a speed camera that photographed the license plate that remained in Hobbs’ name.

Hobbs confronted Kirkling outside the Huy Road house. When Hobbs and Abrams tried to remove the plates from the SUV, Kirkling pushed Abrams to the ground. Hobbs said he and Kirkling were squaring off for a fistfight when Kirkling pulled a gun.

Stead told jurors that even if Kirkling was carrying a gun, it didn’t prove that Hobbs acted in self-defense.

Hobbs started shooting after Kirkling pushed his girlfriend, Stead said. “This wasn’t about defending her. It was about avenging her honor.”